Exploring the Underground Wonders of Bergamo

Bergamo offers a unique and fascinating experience to visitors looking for an unconventional adventure, exploring the secrets hidden beneath its streets and immersing themselves in the city’s rich and diverse history. Bergamo Sotterranea is a treasure to discover during your visit to this beautiful Italian city.

What is Bergamo Sotterranea?

Surrounded by hills and by the Prealps, Bergamo is famous for its historical and architectural beauty, and together with Brescia it was chosen as the Italian capital of culture in 2023. But there is a hidden world beneath its ancient alleys and squares, just waiting to be discovered: it is Bergamo Sotterranea.

This intricate maze of tunnels, galleries and crypts will tell you the city’s fascinating and mysterious history. If you are a fan of unusual adventures and archaeology, you should definitely explore Bergamo Sotterranea. Here’s what you need to know before you begin your underground journey.

Its history

The origin of Bergamo Sotterranea dates back to Roman times, when the first tunnels were excavated for defence and water supply purposes. Over the centuries, these tunnels were extended and used for various functions, including as a shelter during wars and as secret hideouts during feuds of power between lords, noblemen and republics. Today, Bergamo Sotterranea is a living testimony to the city’s turbulent history.

Popular legends also tell of secret tunnels connecting distant parts of the city with each other – these tunnels were allegedly used in the past for mysterious and sometimes dangerous purposes. Tales of ghosts and spectral presences populate the collective imagination, making the exploration of this underground world even more fascinating.

Bergamo Sotterranea – Things to see

• Lantro Fountain. One of the highlights of the visit to Bergamo Sotterranea is the Lantro Fountain, an incredible cistern system that dates back over a thousand years, and which has a maximum capacity of 400 cubic metres of water. This cistern is an engineering marvel and a fascinating place to explore – it is located right next to the Church of San Lorenzo. Its functioning is based on a complex system of galleries, basins and tunnels, which collect water from the Lantro spring. Visitors can admire a structure made of stone columns and arched vaults that date back to the reconstruction of the Church of San Lorenzo in 1500.
• The Cammino delle Mura (Walls Path) is a fascinating route that allows you to explore the dungeons of the Venetian walls, an actual treasure trove of history and mystery. Walking through the tunnels, you can relive the atmosphere of times gone by, imagining the adventures of the city’s ancient defenders. Beyond the walls, you can walk through the ancient defensive tunnels that once protected the city from enemy invasions. Through these dark and narrow passages, you can also visit the famous cannon houses.
• San Michele and San Giovanni cannon houses. Characterised by an intricate maze of tunnels and underground passages, the cannon houses offered a safe haven to soldiers, and they were also a strategic point to surprise and repel possible enemy attacks. The San Michele cannon house is one of the main landmarks in the complex of tunnels near the Venetian Walls. What makes it special is the inlay of stalactites and stalagmites that has formed over the centuries. The San Giovanni cannon house is located in the bastion bearing the same name, and it is now one of the best viewpoints from where you can admire the Lower Town of Bergamo.
• The walls are not the only ones hiding secrets beneath Bergamo’s ground. The crypts of medieval churches, such as the one in Santa Maria Maggiore, offer a journey through time between ancient frescoes and silent spirituality. The Crypt in Santa Maria Maggiore is a fascinating underground complex dating back to the 9th century. Decorated with medieval frescoes and Romanesque columns, this crypt offers a unique insight into the religious history of Bergamo.

Bergamo Sotterranea – When can I visit it?

This hidden treasure is now accessible to the public through guided tours and organised itineraries. Visitors are taken on an exciting journey through history and legend.

Bergamo Sotterranea is open to the public from April to October. Be sure to check opening hours before planning your visit, as times may vary depending on the day and time of year. Guided Mistery tours are available to provide an in-depth perspective on Bergamo’s underground history and architecture.

Underground temperatures are obviously cooler than they are outside. Be sure to wear appropriate clothing and non-slip shoes for exploration. Children may enter, but only if they are accompanied by adults.

How can I get there?

A visit to Bergamo Sotterranea begins in the heart of the historical centre of the Upper Town of Bergamo, near Piazza Vecchia, perhaps after a Tuk Tuk tour. The historic centre is easily accessible by public transport from the railway station or from Bergamo Airport.

Great recognition for the promotion of the Bergamo sotterranea initiative must certainly be given to the Bergamo speleological group called ‘Le Nottole‘, which were the first, starting as early as the 1970s, to promote, even at school level in the Bergamo area, photographs, educational material and, above all, curiosity at an institutional level towards this underground heritage that was worth rediscovering, exploring and enhancing in order to give completeness to Bergamo’s history.